just wondering- good samaritan laws?

Ruthiegal · Apr 8, 2010

Here's one link of many when you google or bing good Samaritan Laws... hope this helps

Emergency RN · Apr 8, 2010

Hi everyone! I was curious, after reading a post about a nursing student who felt obligated to stop at a car accident scene, what the rules were regarding nurses/nursing students and good samaritan laws.
And...please don't flame I mean no disrespect - I have a lot of respect for nurses, which is why I want to be one, but I am asking what can a nurse do in an emergency situation without a doctor - legally, I mean. In an ER, the nurse carries out the doctor's order and uses the judgement to assess whether the nurse agrees or disagrees with the doctor....a check on the doctor of sorts. If the doctor isn't there, can a nurse legally do.....what? How could a nurse help in an emergency situation without a doctor? What are nurses legally obligated to do?

Nurses do not necessarily need doctors to be present in order to be clinically effective. While we may need to follow medical orders (when they are there to follow), nurses are also independently functional within their own scope of practice, whether there is a MD there or not.

Something simple like putting pressure on a wound to prevent someone from bleeding to death, being there to let the victim be psychologically reassured that help is on the way, or even taking charge of the situation by giving instructions to bystanders to assist in ways that would prevent further injury can go a long way in stabilizing a scene. Frankly, the ONLY thing that a doctor can do that a nurse cannot is write medical orders. Other than that, any nurse is as capable to respond and assist at scenes of accidents. Additionally, in the US, there is hardly ever a doctor responding to any accident scene. They're usually attended to by EMTs and Paramedics which, in the chain of medical level of care are actually considered below that of nurses.

MissIt · Apr 8, 2010

You're not legally obligated to do anything. But if you do, you can do anything that you've been trained to do and are comfortable doing... CPR, first aid. You cannot "practice medicine without a license" so you can't, for example, diagnose and prescribe a medication... even something like benadryl. The chances of someone suing you because you help them in an accident are really slim, but there are litigious people out there. I just took a red cross first aid class a few weeks ago and she said she didn't know of any situation in which those cases had been upheld unless there was just really bad negligence. She also said that of the medical professionals, nurses are the most likely to respond to an accident or an emergency in a public place, like a plane. :)

Heather, ARNP · Jun 10, 2011

Emergency RN said - "Frankly, the ONLY thing that a doctor can do that a nurse cannot is write medical orders. Other than that, any nurse is as capable to respond and assist at scenes of accidents. Additionally, in the US, there is hardly ever a doctor responding to any accident scene. They're usually attended to by EMTs and Paramedics which, in the chain of medical level of care are actually considered below that of nurses."

WOW! I'm am really surprised that a registered nurse would make the statements above.

I'm all for the empowerment of nurses, but it's really important to recognize your limitations and the scope of your practice. There are several statements in that post that are worrisome. But a nurse that makes statments that all a physician can do that a nurse can't is write an order is a nurse that seems to have gone rouge. How dangerous!

And a nurse that calls herself "Emergency RN" should know that EMTs have specialized emergency training that is not typically taught in RN programs. An RN license does not mean you can intubate and provide proper care out in the field. That's why people go to ACLS, PALS and other emergency courses. It is wrong to assume that EMTs/paramedics are below nurses in the medical chain of command. It's about the training and the situation - I would think that a paramedic is much more qualified to provide emergent care to a MVA injured patient than an OB nurse.

Shame on you. If you are going to share information with other nurses and basically represent yourself as an expert - you should think twice about what you are typing.

Look at the Nursing Practice Act for your state. Look at the Good Samaritan Law for your state. Speak to your nursing instructors for guidance on where to get an answer appropriate to where you live and what your training is. Familiarize yourself with your scope of practice and that of other healthcare workers. And don't get so confident that you forget you are not a physician. Nurses are not physicians and being a physician (or midlevel provider) is not just about writing orders.

Part of being a good nurse is knowing the limitations of your training!